Checkmate
by Kendahl
Summary: Rogue find herself in Metropolis, working for the newest member of the Hellfire Club, Lex Luthor. She has to decide where her loyalties lie in this grand chess match between the new Black Bishop and her new rechargeable crush. SupermanReturns/X-men X-over
1. Prologue

**Story Title: **Checkmate  
**Chapter Rating:** PG  
**Warning labels: Post **Superman Returns,fusion media Rogue w/divergence of X-men timeline,X-over/AU  
**Disclaimer:** I do not own Superman or the X-men. I make no money off of this and I promise to put the characters back where I found them when I finish.  
**Chapter Summary:** Rogue runs away from home only to find herself in Metropolis.

* * *

**Prologue**

"Thanks for the ride Mr. Randy. Ah hope you make it back in time for your boy's birthday," she smiled softly at the scraggly bearded man in the denim shirt and jeans. The friendly trucker had let her hitch a ride with him from New York all the way to the edges of Metropolis. Even now the kindly man was staring at her with a concerned expression.

"Are you sure you'll be able to make it to your Aunt's place? She _is_ expecting you in today right?" he asked.

"Don't worry about me none," she admonished him with a waggling finger and a big grin. "Ah'm a big girl, and Ah'll be fine getting into town on mah own. You just haul your load, and when you get home say happy birthday to your baby for me all right?"

"Will do Rogue. You take care now."

"Bye!" she waved a gloved hand at him and pulled up the hood of her jacket to keep the stiff wind off her cheeks. It was warming up, slowly edging from winter into summer but the temperature had a sudden drop from an oncoming storm that was going to be blowing in from the coast. She probably had a couple of hours before the rain hit if the weather station was accurate.

The middle aged trucker smiled helplessly at the cheerful girl who hoisted her bag and set off toward the city on foot. He felt bad about not being able to take her any farther than he already had, but he wouldn't be allowed to leave the weigh station for another hour or so and she was so determined to get going. That and he was headed in the opposite direction of the city, and the silly girl had refused to let him go out of his way once he had mentioned that he wasn't heading into the city proper; he was going to pass it on the highway that would lead him back west to Atlanta.

She was a sweet little thing, quiet, but friendly enough once you got past her initial reserve. Her strange hair had been enough to make him nervous about taking her along with him, but it had been a mite too cold and there was just something about her eyes, and that fading bruise on her left cheek bone, that made him itch to bundle her up and keep her safe. Wherever she came from was obviously no good for her. Hopefully she'd be better off where she was headed. At least she had an aunt in the city that was willing to take her in for a bit. And Superman was guarding Metropolis. Randy had already told her if she ever got into a spot of trouble, serious trouble, mind, while she was in Metropolis to just yell for Superman and he'd come save her. He hoped she'd remember that. He settled back in his seat and watched her until she disappeared.

Rogue walked down the road until she was out of sight of the weigh station, rubbing her arms through her coat sleeves the entire way. The wind wasn't cold enough to be freezing but it was brisk enough to raise the hair on her arms through the thin layers she was wearing. She'd have to get a new coat soon. The oversized greenish gray coat had seen better days. The edge of her right sleeve was fraying, the third to the last button was missing when she closed it, and there was a hole in her left elbow. She'd patched it before but the patch had fallen off first chance it had. She'd never been much with a needle and thread, no matter how her aunt had tried to teach her, and Mama- no, _Mystique_, had never bothered with Home Ec. studies. She had been the type to train you how to keep a gun rather than how to keep a house.

She hitched her bag up higher on her shoulder. With one last glance behind to make sure there was no one around to see, she launched into the air. Eventually she was too far up to be noticeable to anyone on the ground. She flew until she found a nice abandoned alley to set down in. Gratefully she sank from the sky into the alley that thankfully blocked the wind. Rubbing her face with her sweater and breathing into her cupped hands to try and return circulation to her frozen nose and hands she peeked around the edge of the alley.

Now there'd been businesses over that way, and a few motels as well. She still had some of the money that Lady Sage had leant her when she'd run into the older woman when she'd been in New York. The lady had been so kind to her and done what she could to help her to gain control of her abilities. Not the soul sucking one, of course, there wasn't anyone who could do a thing about that, but the other powers that she'd managed to accidentally steal. She'd even used her telepathy to help calm the personalities in the back of her mind. She rather wished she could have stayed longer with the other woman and learned more from her, but Sage hadn't wanted the man she'd been working for to find out about Rogue's powers, so she'd given her some money and sent her on her way.

Sage had suggested that she head to Massachusetts to join a school for 'special' youngsters, but Rogue had rejected that idea. Especially once she found out that the guy who owned the place was a friend and rival of Magneto. He was the reason that Ma-Mystique had adopted her. He was the reason Mystique had made her use her powers against Ms. Marvel. Now she was in her head, and if it weren't for Sage, she would be screaming at Rogue still. There was no way she was going anywhere near anyone who had any sort of ties with Magneto.

So that's how she now found herself strolling down the dirty side street to make her way toward the busy places she'd seen while she was in the air. Trash collected in little nooks and crannies. A plastic bag floated despondently in the gutter. A little pool of dirty rain water settled in the wrinkles of off white plastic, a silent witness of the rain that had pushed through the city only a few hours before she'd arrived. She'd have to hurry to get checked in before the storm rolled in tonight.

A hand fisted in the material on her shoulder and jerked her off balance. With a startled cry Rogue tumbled into a wiry body. Her beat up duffle bag hit the pavement with a dull thud. Rogue saw her snacks tumble out of the side pocket before she was whirled around and passed into another set of arms. She caught a passing impression of a handful of boys about her age. She got a better glance of the guys slinking in and upped that estimation by a few years.

"Woo hoo! Look what we caught!" a raucous voice cried. Leering grins and agreeing sniggers greeted the statement. A few of them called out suggestive remarks about what they'd like to do with her when they got their turn. Rogue wanted to roll her eyes at the original dialogue, but was too busy reaching out her hands to balance herself against the new guy she found herself faced with. Messy dirty-blond hair, a very unfortunate attempt at trying to grow a mustache, and ripped and ragged clothes; the guy had an oily face and an even oilier smile.

Rogue's muscles tensed under her skin, coiling to strike out. Ah but how to most efficiently deal with them? If there was one thing Mystique had taught her to appreciate, it was efficiency in accomplishing a goal. And she'd have to keep an eye out for the guy with the knife while she was at it. There were so many ways she could injure them all, and without once exposing her poor abused psyche to their collective IQ point. She jerked her arm free and cocked it back to get ready to shove the heel of her hand into Oily's face when a voice intervened.

"You get away from her," a soft voice called dangerously from the end of the street behind her. Rogue, along with all of the scruffy street rats circling her, twisted and craned her neck to evaluate the new threat. All in all the new threat turned out not to be very threatening at all.

A slender woman balanced in a precariously wide stance on her stiletto heals A leash attached trailed from her left wrist across her left leg and behind her to the dog that curled its lip to reveal pointy little fangs in an intimidating manner. Or as an intimidating as a cute little ball of ginger fluff could manage. The short skirt of her white dress stretched tight across the woman's thighs, in a way Rogue would swear was about to rip at the seams. At least it would have if Rogue'd been wearing it. This woman acted like she'd been born to those clothes. Rogue bet she could totter up a mountain in those ridiculous heals if she had to, but goodness sake, what would a lady like _her_ be doing in the mountains?

They all gaped at the newcomer in confusion.

"Looks like we got an even better catch than we'd first realized boys!" The guy with the knife crowed, slinking past Rogue to try and get closer to the woman framed in the mouth of the alley. Rogue did roll her eyes at this, but still took the time to follow through with her original plan to smack Oily in the face with her hand. He jerked back with a howl. The boy who'd first caught her wrenched her around by the shoulder yet again and started to grapple for a hold on her arms. The other guys lurched toward her, whether to grab her, or hit her remained undetermined as they were once again interrupted by the woman in the white dress.

"I said, get away from her!"

The words were not nearly as impressive as the really large gun she pulled from underneath her fluffy stole.

"And just for the record, this is real fox fur, so if I land on the ground because I'm blowing a hole in one of you little sleaze balls I'm going to be seriously pissed off!"

The first guy shoved her out of the way so he could take off running, and she could hear the other guys in the tailing after. Air rushed out of her lungs in a painful whoosh, and she lay there gasping for a second. Since she couldn't move at the moment she found herself looking for shapes in the peeling white paint on the brick wall she was sprawled next to. That one spot looked kind of like a bunny, or someone flipping you the bird if you looked at it from more of an angle. Her hands were stinging where she scraped them bracing from the fall, and that was the first pain she noticed when she began to regain her breath.

A little pink tongue lapped against her face. Ugh, dog breathe. She cringed from the eager attention of the Pomeranian. Gentle tugs pressed at her shoulders, pulling her upright into a sitting position.

"Pumpkin! Down Pumpkin! Oh I'm so sorry about her, she's still being trained. Ya know Ginger would never run around licking people like that! Hey, hey are you alright?"

"Ah'm fine." She shoved against the arm being offered as a brace, pushing herself to her feet to prove it. "Ah'm fine," she repeated. "Thank you."

They stared at each other silently for a moment. Then Rogue's eyes trailed to the gun still clutched in the woman's hand. She raised an eyebrow.

"A Desert Eagle?" she asked incredulously. The gun was almost bigger than the woman.

"Yeah I know. Makes me miss my Seecamp, but I stole this one off my guard so it's not like I was in any position to be choosey eh?" The woman fluffed her hair, the gun waving around in her free hand in a fashion careless enough to make Rogue edgy. Thankfully she tucked it back wherever she had hidden it before so she could pick up her dog.

"Well that's done then. I was about to get something to eat. What do you say; would you care to join me?"

"Ah have always depended on the kindness of strangers," Rogue quoted with a whimsical smile. "Oh, the name is Rogue, by the way."

"Rogue? What an unusual name. Is that on your birth certificate?" the woman asked, she raised the wriggling ball of fluff in her arms to eye level so she could give it a disapproving stare when it wouldn't stop squirming right away. Then she settled it back into the crook of her arm. Rogue's eyes followed the interaction while she answered.

"Anna Marie. Most people call me Rogue before we part ways, for one reason or another."

"Really? Hm, well my name is Kitty- Katherine actually, Katherine Kowalski. Now let's eat. I'm starving."

* * *

Ok, so hopefully that will set up for the fix in next chapter. A special thanks to everyone who reviewed. I don't have a beta and I get caught up in the making things fit togther, so all suggestions are welcome and appreciated.


	2. Chapter 1

**Story Title: **Checkmate  
**Chapter Rating:** PG13  
**Warning labels: Post **Superman Returns,fusion media Rogue w/divergence of X-men timeline,X-over/AU  
**Disclaimer:** I do not own Superman or the X-men. I make no money off of this and I promise to put the characters back where I found them when I finish.  
**Chapter Summary:** Jason is distracted, and his parents try to find out why. Rogue invites herself to a boring old party held by the Hellfire Club.

* * *

**Chapter 1**

"Hey, Space Cadet," Lois teased breaking into her son's thoughts with a light swat to the back of his head with the manila folder she was holding in her hand. It was hard to imagine that he was now a senior in highschool. It seemed like only yesterday that he was running around with a box on his head, or drawing pictures of Superman with his crayons. Lois rather wished he were little again. Teenage angst was exhausting, and getting him to talk to her about anything important was like pulling teeth. "What's got you so distracted lately?"

"D-distracted?" Jason White stared at his mother blankly. His hand rose automatically to smooth down his hair as he swiveled in his chair so his whole body would be facing her. "What makes you think I'm distracted?"

She rolled her eyes.

"Jason, I know obits and fluff pieces are not the most exciting stories to cover, but you really can do better than this." She tossed the folder into his desk. "That, and you've been staring into space for the last fifteen minutes."

"Don't worry about me, Mom. I was just… thinking."

"Very deeply, since you haven't even been noticing that your phone has been ringing since before we started this conversation," she agreed with a sardonic twist of her lips. Jason noticed his shrilling phone the moment she pointed it out. He lunged for the handset, only to be met with a dial tone. Across the room he noticed Clark Kent's curious gaze land on him for a second. Blue eyes slid past him and whatever dad found on mom's face seemed to satisfy him because Clark dipped his head back over the paperwork on his desk. He very carefully set the phone back in his cradle and turned once again to look at his mom.

Jason felt his cheeks heat under his mother's pointed look.

"Look you don't have to worry about me-"

"Of course I have to worry about you! Are you listening to yourself?" Lois cut in, with a toss of her head. "Do not make me get your fathers to intervene on this," she threatened darkly. Jason could almost feel Clark's eyes settle back on them, no longer pretending not to listen in.

He dredged up a grin, hoping to dispel her concern. If fearless reporter Lois Lane decided there was something wrong with her son he'd hear about it. For hours. From her, from his great uncle, from Jimmy, from his father, from his other father, from his father's mild mannered alter ego, and it wouldn't end until they were all satisfied that whatever was wrong with him wasn't a manifestation of his 'unique heritage'… or life threatening… or illegal.

The last one was more a fear of his fathers' he knew, because he knew that some of the things Lois was willing to do when she'd first started reporting had been somewhat less than ethical, and they were worried that he would end up taking after her when he became a fulltime reporter. In fact, she still sometimes pushed the bar in legalities for major stories. Especially when it came to anything that Lex Luthor touched since he was still trying to kill Superman, and he periodically came up with ways to target Jason in his schemes.

He lowered his voice, speaking from clenched teeth in the vague hope that it would make his mother see that he really didn't want to discuss this in the bullpen, or at all. Ever. "I'm not compromising any secrets, doing drugs, or plotting the overthrow of the government. It's nothing Mom, so just chill out."

"Chill- Did you just tell me to 'Chill out'?" Lois's face was scrunching up like she'd just eaten something very nasty tasting and she couldn't for the life of her figure out why she had. This look was one step away from her seriously angry and working out how best to plan her attack in the blistering article she was composing in her head. Jason winced.

"Hey, I'm about to go up on the roof for a bit of fresh air. I thought Jason looked like he could use a break before he gets to work rewriting those articles," a cheerful voice cut in. Clark was giving them his best dorky grin. Jason took that as his cue and stood up.

"Yes, Jason. You look like you could use some fresh air." She directed her words at Jason in a tone that made it clear that this was an order, not a suggestion. Then she turned to Clark and said firmly, "Fix this." This was also not a suggestion.

The two Kryptonians shared a look behind the fuming brunette's back as she stalked back to her desk. Jason's dad tilted his head toward the elevators. Jason slinked after him sullenly. This wasn't fair, ganging up on him like this.

Eventually they reached the roof. Jason huddled down into his jacket, shoulders hunched against the wind. No, that wasn't true. He barely even noticed the wind with his own high body temperature, he just really didn't want to have this conversation and he knew that he wasn't going anywhere until his dad was finished with him. The older reporter settled against the low stone wall, staring out over the city below like he had all the time in the world. His legs were crossed, and his elbows braced against the rough stone. He looked comfortably settled in, and perfectly content not to say a word.

Jason hopped up on the wall next to him, settling down until he was comfortably perched where he could see the city himself. He brooded about what he knew was bound to happen eventually if his father kept this up. Jason wouldn't be able to handle the silence. He'd cave and tell him everything. And his father would listen in that quiet way of his, not condemning or judging him. He'd listen until Jason was finished and then he'd ask undemanding questions that would make Jason put whatever was troubling him into words. Then he'd try to offer practical advice about how to deal with the problem and diffuse his mother while he was at it.

Clark Kent was a tricky bastard like that, and he wasn't about to give in. This was even worse than his mother's nagging. Jason rolled his shoulders to try and get rid of some of the tension. He was not going to tell his family anything. He didn't have to tell them everything that was going on in his life. He so wasn't going to fall for this trick…

The silence stretched out between them. His muscles tightened in anticipation, and he could swear he could feel the ball of anxiety that settled into his stomach like a lead weight. It was a horrible trick to let Jason suffer from his silence. He knew it was a trick. His dad was always like that. Not pushing, or demanding answers, Clark was simply there, waiting. He wasn't going to crack…

"So there's this new girl at school." He noticed the understanding smile his father was directing his way. "It's not like that!" Clark's eyebrows rose, but he didn't say a word, still holding onto his listening silence. He'd be like this until Jason explained how it 'really was' if it wasn't 'like that'.

Jason grinned sheepishly.

"Ok, it's kind of like that, but in an incredibly not really sort of way. It's- she's different from all the other girls. Actually she's different from everyone else at school. It's like she's so far beyond anything that the rest of the kids at school are involved in. She's hiding something. I just wish I knew what it was," he trailed off.

"What's her name? What's she look like? And have you actually worked up the nerve to talk to her yet?" Clark asked, sounding amused.

"You know, I dunno what her name is. I'm not sure anybody in the whole school does. She's called Rogue, even by the teachers."

"Strange name to go by," he observed impartially.

"She's a strange girl."

Clark spared a grin for Jason's grimace of frustration. "So what's she like?"

"She's about shoulder height on me, maybe a bit shorter. She's got brown hair, and she wears dark clothes, and leans toward dark makeup. She is really cute and has a southern accent. It's really easy to pick up over everyone else, so I usually hear her when she says something. And no I haven't worked up the nerve to talk to her yet. She may look like a tiny thing, but she laid Tony Radcliff flat a couple of weeks ago."

"Wasn't he that football player? The one who was bullying you last year?" This time there was a hint of admiration in his father's voice. Jason had been having issues with the football team, and Tony in particular. They had been picking on him because of his interest in art and his complete _lack_ of interest in anything resembling athletics. He could have easily have made any team he wanted but he had adopted his biological father's instinct not to draw attention to his abilities. It was bad enough having to watch his strength around people when he was just walking among them, he couldn't imagine what kind of reaction he'd get if he forgot himself and started flying because he was trying to catch a ball in the middle of a game.

"Oh, you should have been there. He started calling her names and then he started hitting on her. He made the comment about how he'd heard emo girls were easy and she just 'bam!'- uppercut to the jaw. I swear he went flying a good couple of feet before he landed. He was out cold," Jason drew the words out 'out cold' with great relish. He laughed aloud at the memory. Clark's soft snickers joined him. They both quieted down after a bit.

"I shouldn't be encouraging that kind of behavior but I rather wish I'd been there to see it. So what makes you so certain she's hiding something?" his father dragged him back to the conversation.

"Rogue always wears gloves."

"Um… okaaay. That's not exactly a guarantee that she's hiding anything but her hands," Clark pointed out. "Maybe she has scars or something."

Jason ignored this.

"And then there's the way she holds herself... She never touches anyone if she can help it. It's like she's afraid of physical contact. She doesn't have any real friends. She chooses to be alone and seems to resent anyone who tries to get close to her. But I've seen her watching the other kids at school when she doesn't think anyone is looking. She looks so sad and wistful. Like she wants to be a part of a group, but something is holding her back. I don't know. There's just something about her, I'm going to figure it out. There has to be a reason for the way she acts."

He chewed on the edge of his thumb before he caught his father's piercing blue eyes frowning at him over the edge of his thick rimmed glasses. He dropped his hand like it was burnt. Clark was amazingly tolerant, but that was one habit Jason had that drove him crazy. It was nearly as irritating to Kryptonian as Lois's snatching an occasional smoke. She'd mostly kicked the habit, but she would indulge an occasional one off after a life threatening article.

"You do realize that you aren't going to learn anything about her if you never talk to her."

"But I like my arms where they are," Jason mock whined.

"And you should just tell your mother you're having girl problems and you want to try to work them out for yourself at the moment. Then you should reassure her if you need any help at all you will go to her as soon as you are ready. She'll be upset you didn't immediately tell her what the problem is, but since this is the first girl you've actually admitted to having any sort of interest in you may get lucky and get off without too much of a lecture."

"You really believe that?" Jason asked with a raised brow.

"Um… no, not really, no- but one can always hope!" Clark announced cheerfully, shoving away from the wall to clap him on the back. "At the very least you should expect a grilling attempt on your mysterious crush!"

"Daaaaad! It's not a crush!"

"Of course not," he agreed easily. "But the more you argue that it's not the more that your mother will think that it is, and the more interest she's going to have in your girlfriend."

"She's not my girlfriend!"

"Figure of speech, Jayce." He cocked his head suddenly. Jason stilled as well, listening for what caught his attention. A fire over on 13th St. "I have to go."

"I'll tell Mom you got called away."

* * *

"Anna Marie! Darling! I'm going out tonight! I'll probably be out late." Katherine was sitting in front of her vanity and trying to decide what jewelry to wear with her outfit. She was wearing a black sheath dress, with long evening gloves. She'd taken to wearing them with Rogue around so much. They frequently joked that they were trying to reintroduce a new fashion trend. The girl was an absolute treasure. Rogue was like the daughter she'd never really wanted to have but enjoyed immensely anyway. Ugh, children. She hoped to God she never had children-they'd belong to Lex, and wasn't that a scary thought? Picking through the pieces she'd pulled so far, she discarded the pearls in favor of the diamonds. She pulled a diamond bracelet on a stretching band over her hand.

"Why do yah have tah go?" Rogue plopped down on Katherine's bed and tugged a pillow into her lap to clutch unhappily to her chest.

"Because it's what I do. I go to Lex's boring old parties where everyone talks about boring old politics. I smile, I act more stupid than even _I _am in reality, and then at the end of the night, Lex might decide he wants to sleep with me. In which case I'll come home, take a long, scalding hot bath, scrub my skin nearly raw, and buy some pretty things for us. Won't that be nice? Is there anything in particular that you were wanting?" Katherine latched the diamond earring into place on her ear and shifted it around a bit to test and make sure it wasn't going to fall off easily.

Lex would be _so_ pissed at her if she managed to lose any jewelry. He was always so touchy and suspicious of anything that went missing, every since the crystal incident with New Krypton all those years ago. And let's face it; one earring alone could probably feed a starving little orphan in… whatever little country starving non-American orphans congregated in. For several years even. Or feed a bunch of starving orphans for several months. Something like that anyways.

"Yeah, Ah'm wantin' yah not tah go tah this shindig of _His_," Rogue insisted vehemently.

She'd been living with Kitty for several months now, since she first arrived in Metropolis, when she'd saved her and then took her in. She hadn't freaked when she found out about Rogue's powers. She thought they were really neat. In fact Kitty went out of her way to keep Rogue and her powers from coming to Lex's attention, treating her like an extra Pomeranian any time he was around.

Rogue quite adored the woman, despite her random moments of air-headedness. And she quite thoroughly disapproved of the casual disregard Lex Luthor displayed for her friend. In fact she disliked just about everything about the man. She'd even offered to use her powers to get them set up somewhere else with an equally comfortable lifestyle, but the older woman had surprisingly put her foot down on the matter. It was a source of irritation for her that he paid so well, and she needed the money if she wasn't going to be sponging off Kitty and forcing her into even more contact with the man.

"Did you know that your accent thickens when you get upset?" Pumpkin jumped up on the bed beside Rogue and started to sniffle at her the leg exposed by the cute pair of satiny sleeping shorts Katherine had gotten her the last time they went shopping together. Rogue was wearing the matching little spaghetti strap top, an outfit she would never have chosen on her own since she'd developed powers. But Katherine had insisted she have a nice set of satiny pj's for the summer so she wouldn't burn up. Rogue just had to be careful to avoid brushing into anybody when she was wearing them.

She pulled the pillow from her lap and slammed it between her and the invasive ball of fluff before it could manage to get up close and personal with her powers. The dog jerked back and wobbled a few steps away before dropping onto the bed, unconscious for a hopefully short period. She rolled her eyes. The stupid dog was always trying to get close to her. You'd figure the first time it had licked her and been knocked unconscious for its trouble would have learned it but the darn thing kept coming back.

"Ah don' have ahn accent," Rogue protested, momentarily distracted by the common argument with her guardian, and the near fatal curiosity of the Pomeranian. "Everyone else does. And this isn't about me, so don' go tryin' tah change the subject!"

"Look, I have to be there Marie. I'm supposed to sneak away from the party and plant some bugs in Shaw's office, and steal some files and stuff that Lex needs. The boys set them all up, but there's no way that they'll be able to get inside. So that's where I come in. No one is going to think twice at silly old Kitty wandering off."

"It's gonnah be dangerous for yah. Ah'm gonnah change and go with yah. Ah'm gonnah be there tah cover yah in case somethin' goes wrong."

"What could possibly go wrong?"

"Do yah really want me tah ahnswer that?"

"You don't have to worry about me, Anna Marie," she giggled. "Besides, don't you have a test tomorrow?"

"Nah, Ah'm good. And Ah'm comin'," Rogue corrected her darkly.

"Well, if you say so. You better hurry and get changed, if you're that determined to come. Lex is going to send the limo around soon."

Rogue got up and dropped the pillow on the bed. With another look back to see the older woman shove a tiny pistol and an extra cartridge of bullets into her evening purse, Rogue slipped out the door. She paused for a second to search for the tendril of power that was Pietro Maximoff inside her mind. Tapping it for a hit of speed, she felt a rush of power swirl through her body. She was down the hallway into her own room too quickly for a normal human's eyes to follow. She quickly shucked off her clothes, grabbed a pair of stretchy black jeans, a dark sweater and a sports bra. A second later had her debating over accessories. Some dark boots and the Beretta shoved into the waistband at the back of her pants completed her nighttime look. She raced back to Katherine's room in time to see her touch up her lipstick and drop that in her purse as well.

"Coming?" Katherine asked holding up Pumpkin's leash.

"You're having way too much fun with this," Rogue accused.

"Yep!"

She tapped a quick hit of Mystique's power and jumped into the air. When she landed she was about a foot tall and fluffier than she'd ever been in her life.

"That is such a trip, I don't think I will ever get over seeing you do that!" Katherine squealed. Another reason to enjoy Rogue's company, she was just full of all sorts of tricks. Thanks heavens Lex let her have her own penthouse, it'd be a pain to try and hide if they all lived together. She now had a hint of just how difficult it had to have been for Lois Lane and her little super son all these years. Katherine scooped Rogue up and attached the leash to her collar. With that she grabbed her purse, the fox fur stole she'd been wearing the day she'd found her little protégé, and strolled down to meet the limo.

* * *

Alright, more comprehensible on the accent here I hope. And an added bit of random internal dialogue to reinforce story timeline. Hopefully that will be enough to keep from jarring everybody. Just let it be understood that the more agitated Rogue gets the thicker her accent will be, I guess.

And thanks to my reviewers so far: Shado Librarian, Lilbit4, Actinolite28, and whoever the anon review was from.


	3. Chapter 2

**Story Title: **Checkmate  
**Chapter Rating:** PG13  
**Warning labels: **X-over/AU  
**Disclaimer:** I do not own Superman or the X-men. I make no money off of this and I promise to put the characters back where I found them when I finish.  
**Chapter Summary: **Kitty and Rogue do some sleuthing. Jason works up his nerve.

**Chapter 2**

"And you are sure Zhivago will be able to work around the limitations that will be placed on him by working with our illustrious friends?" Shaw asked in a low voice.

"Don't wo- Kitty!" Lex's voices went from harsh whisper to a normal range as he turned to greet Katherine when she slid up beside him.

"I'm so sorry to bother you," Katherine was apologetic. "I do hope I'm not interrupting anything important between you gentlemen."

"My dear Miss Kowalski, you grace us with your luminescent presence," Sebastian Shaw lightly kissed the back of Kitty's gloved hand. Kitty found herself staring at the violet satin bow that held his graying black hair tied back longingly. It was too bad Lex was bald; she rather wished he had Lord Shaw's thick locks. The man straightened from his elegant bow, tugging his lapels until his clothes fell back into place across his broad shoulders. The deep blue jacket he wore trailed down in the back, but opened in the front to reveal his deep purple vest. The black trousers he wore disappeared into the knee high white stockings. White ruffles fell over his hands from beneath his coat sleeves, and flowed down his throat. A single blazing sapphire winked from the frothy material, the only jewelry the older man wore.

Katherine smiled tremulously back at him, intimidated. This was the man who held an even higher rank than Lex Luthor within the organization hosting the party. As near as Kitty could tell, everyone who was connected with the New York branch of the Hellfire Club was in attendance. Not that she kept track of these things, but there seemed to be more people than there had been at previous gatherings. They had to be the members who had never attended the same parties she had, because if they weren't then that meant that some of these Victorian dressed socialites were members from some of the other branches. For some reason that thought frightened her.

"You're too kind, Milord," she demurred, casting her eyes to the floor.

"Not at all, not at all!" he disagreed warmly. His eyes slid along the clinging lines of her dress, and she had to suppress her shiver at being the feeling of being mentally stripped by the man. "We ardently admire your beauty. Of course, you have not been indoctrinated into the Club as yet. One can only imagine how magnificent you will appear in the full regalia of your position once you have been welcomed to the fold."

Rogue chose that moment to snarl menacingly from Kitty's protective clutch.

"Pumpkin! _Behave!_ Oh I'm so sorry, Lord Shaw. She's normally so sweet, but I fear she's becoming rather overexcited by all of… well, everything!" Kitty forced her lips into a winsome smile. "Please, forgive me; this is actually what I came over here for. I was just going to let you know that I'm taking little Pumpkin here away from the crowds for a bit. You gentlemen can laminatent and regaleon without me. I'll be back when she's calmed down okay?" She dropped a quick kiss on Lex's cheek, flashed another brilliant smile at Lord Sebastian Shaw and managed to minnow her way back into the crowd before either man could stop her. She could hear their voices fading behind her.

"Laminatent?"

"Just try not to think about it, Lord."

The thick oak paneled door cut off the end of their conversation and Kitty was by herself in a long hallway. She strolled down the hallway, staring at the statues lining the walls. Some of them were okay, others were seriously ugly. The fact that most, if not all, of the pieces were probably worth more than she spent in a month seemed so unfair. Taking the stairs on the right she made her way down toward where Lex had painstakingly drilled into her head that Shaw's office would be.

A credit card later and she was past the flimsy lock. You'd figure a millionaire would be willing to shell out for better locks, but then again, he liked to keep things as old school as possible, and a lot of extra security would 'disrupt the integrity of the manor', or some crap like that. As soon as she slipped inside, the ginger colored fluff leapt from her arms. Rogue's feet hit the ground with a solid thud and she carried through with a spinning step that brought her about-face. Kitty flicked the lock on the door behind her so that no one could walk in on them.

"So what, in pahticular, are we looking for?" Rogue demanded.

"I have to hook _this_ up to the computer," Katherine waved the small metal box she fished from her purse, "so the guys can hack the computer. While they are doing that, we are going to go through his file cabinets for anything that might be important, and/or incriminating."

While she spoke she booted up the computer and plugged in the box. A small green light flashed. Then a red light flashed. Finally a soft blue light came on and stayed. As soon as the password screen came up, the cursor started to move around on its own, and little dots appeared in the password box. She turned her attention back to what she was saying.

"If it's really important, then we take pictures."

This time she pulled a small hard case from her purse. She flicked the latches open but high powered digital camera from inside the little bag. Rogue snatched the camera from her hands.

"Ah'll get started ahn that."

Before Katherine managed to get out her 'Ok' Rogue was blurring through the files, rifling the papers the way a strong breeze would. Each draw opened and slid shut in quick succession. A few papers got pulled and pictures snapped. Then Rogue put everything back in order. The whole process took less the five minutes.

"How are they doin' ahn cracking that?"

A quick peek at the glowing LCD screen showed her what was going on. "The files are just starting to get downloaded."

"So we got time. Ahlright, Ah'll be right back," Rogue announced.

"Where are you planning on going?" Kitty demanded, casting an uneasy glance at the still loading files.

"Ah'm just gonna go take a few more pictures. Trust me, Ah'll be right back." With a saucy grin she flowed into a stranger with blonde hair, big brown eyes in a serving wench outfit.

"Be-" The next second she was gone. "-careful."

Katherine turned to stare at the slowly filling bar, silently urging it to go faster. The quicker it got done, the less chance there was of getting busted. She pressed a microphone to the underside of the desk and then got up to put one on the thick drapes behind the desk. Almost distantly she took note of the fine trembling in her hand. Later. She could worry later. She glanced at the door hoping that Rogue knew what she was doing. What if she got caught? What if Lex found out about her powers? This wasn't even her problem, why was she getting involved anyway? Katherine silently berated herself for letting the southern girl join her.

The computer started to shut itself down, the blue light disappearing from the black metal box Buck had handed her while they were in the limo. She pulled the USB cord free and shoved the box into her purse. Rogue snapped the latches on the camera case closed and handed it to her to put in also.

Katherine blinked.

"Huh. Just in time."

Rogue just grinned at her and flowed into a Pomeranian who stared up at her with an imperious expectancy. Katherine bent down to pick her up. She made sure to flick the lock on the handle so that the door would be locked behind her when she left. A quick glance back to make sure everything was left the way it was, and then she slipped out into the hallway. Rogue was tucked into one elbow and her purse was stuffed under her armpit so her hand would be free to pet Rogue's head. Soon they were swept up into the glittering throng.

It was going to be a long night.

* * *

"Rogue!" Her head snapped up at the sound of her name and she stared around for the source. She's working on finding the names to go with the faces she got at the party last night, but she can't find anything with her computer. She doesn't know where to look. She simply raises her brows in question. "Hey."

She trailed her eyes over the form striding toward her. He had broad shoulders if the way he filled out the leather jacket he was wearing was any indication. His red shirt stretched tight over his chest but fell free over his stomach. His fitted jeans wrapped around his legs, showing off the lean outline of his thighs. There was a definite stir of interest. She jerked her gaze back up to his face now that he was close enough to actually get a good glimpse of. High sweeping cheekbones, a softly cleft chin, strong nose and jaw. He came to a stop as he reached her. Messy black hair fell in soft spikes around his… incredibly blue eyes.

She felt her mouth go dry. He was absolutely gorgeous.

"Hi," he grins at her shyly.

How can you even consider thinking about anyone like that? You have absolutely no right, girl. Realization that she had forgotten, even for a brief second, about her powers washes over her in a glacial wave. Hers was a power that she could never forget even for a moment how very lethal she was to the simple humans around her. And stop that! Stop right there! There was no way, no how, and that sort of thing wasn't going anywhere so there was no point even thinking about it. _If you think he's gorgeous now, just imagine what he'll look like six months from now when he's still in a coma._Rogue wants to smile at him, and invite him to have a seat. She wants to know what made him come over and start talking to her when everyone else was afraid. She wants to say something, but the jagged shards of icy regret cut at her throat. She feels sure the frost in her veins had seeped into her skin and freezing the lines of her face. The boy can feel it too because his grin falters, fades away.

She doesn't say a word. He clears his throat nervously.

"Sorry, I wasn't- I didn't mean to-I mean…" he gave a sigh as he dropped that line of conversation. "So, hi. My name is Jason."

She stares at him.

"Jason White. We have Math together… and Social Studies… and Biology." Nope, there's nothing. He tries again, "I sit right behind you in English?"

"Oh, oh yeeaaah. Jason," she says as though she recognizes him. Seriously? This boy has been around this entire time and she never even noticed? That's not possible. She still doesn't remember him, but she wants to push him away not drive a stake through his chest. "Ah'm Rogue but Ah guess you already knew that."

"Yeah I guess I do. Anyways, I wanted to talk to you."

"About?"

"Well, you know you're new to town and I just wanted to say hello, and maybe get to know you." Rogue isn't quite sure how to respond to this so she stays silent. "You're really not going to make this easy are you?"

"Am Ah supposed to? Ah guess Ah never got the instruction manual." Rogue cocks her head and she looks him over again. She doesn't want to be mean, but he's a beautiful boy, and she's too dangerous to get close to. She'd taken a bunch of pictures that she didn't want anyone to know about last night, and she'd brought the chip with her to school so she could work on downloading it. They'd gotten home just in time for her to get ready to go to school this morning. But it's going to be another couple minutes of judicious cutting and pasting before the micro memory chip is Luthor friendly, and surely a table length is safe enough for someone she's not going to get close to.

"Have a sit."

His lips quirk into that same nervous grin he was giving her when he first called out. He positively slinks onto the bench seat across from her, and Rogue finds herself distracted by the animal grace in his movements. He hadn't seemed quite so fluid a second ago. Some sort of a switch had been flipped. It was like now that he knew she wasn't going to drop kick him in the head he was gaining confidence.

"So, yah want tah know about little ol' me. What exactly do yah want to know?"

"Well, for starters, why do you always wear gloves?" Jason asked. He folded his arms on the table and leaned forward, all of his focus on her and her answer. He had such an intense gaze. She averted her own eyes to the glowing screen of her laptop, and shifted some more files onto her hard drive while she considered how she was going to answer him.

"Maybe it's because Ah suck out people's souls when Ah touch them. Hasn't anyone ever taught you anything about Goth chicks?" she mocks.

"You don't seem terribly Goth. I hate to say it but I'm with Tony on this one. You do seem more of an Emo type to me," Jason's grin got even bigger. She glared dangerously at him.

"Do not mahke me eat your face."

"Riiiight then, back to the questions."

"No, it's my turn." Rogue stared at her classmate for a second. "Why do you care? Ah mean where is ahll this curiosity comin' from?"

"Well I guess you could say it's natural. I mean my dad's a reporter; my mom's a reporter. My godfather is the reporter. My uncle was a reporter before he became the editor of the newspaper. All of my friends outside of school are reporters. I practically grew up there. I get curious about people, so naturally when someone seems so unique it catches my attention. Although I have to admit, it took me a long time to work up the nerve to try and approach you. I was really intimidated."

He gives her another shy smile, an embarrassed flush spreading across his cheekbones. Rogue felt something inside herself melt into a gooey pile at the sight. Damn. Then she realized what she was thinking and started searching the ground for a sharp pointed stick. If she stabbed it deeply enough into one of her eyes she'd eventually reach her brain and that would stop these ridiculous responses from happening. Then his words caught up with her. A reporter? An editor? Newspaper? Oh no way was she going to be friends with someone who made their living telling news. Just another reason letting the boy get close was a bad idea, and if she wasn't sure of that before, she was now.

A shrill sound resolved itself into a song and jerked through the air. Rogue looked around, confused for second, until she realized it was coming from her backpack. She dug around for her cell phone and checked the screen. She could feel her eyes crinkle with the really big grin on her face.

"Jordan?"

Rogue couldn't believe Kitty put a Buckethead ringtone on her phone. The woman was a menace, she thought fondly. Always with the stealing of her cell phone to sneak new and random songs onto the ringtone list, and Rogue was never sure what she'd be hearing when she got a call from her.

"Hello?"

"Darling, Darling I need you to come home right away."

Something was wrong. Kitty's voice was breathless and her words almost tumbling over each other. Her smile dropped instantly.

"What's the matter?"

"Look Lex is coming over, and he's going to want those pictures. The memory card needs to be in the camera when he gets here."

Rogue swore softly. She hated that man. If the card wasn't in the camera he'd think that Kitty was holding the card to make copies. He would be right about copies being made, but if he tried to punish Katherine for it then she just might end up killing him. She wouldn't mean to but it would probably happen anyway.

She was too strong to go around beating the crap out of people but she wasn't sure she'd be able to resist if one of the only kind and genuinely accepting people in her life was threatened. And then she'd probably feel guilty, even if Luthor probably deserved to die. She'd never actually killed anyone before. Sure she'd drained someone to the point of near death, but that was an accident. And she was in a coma, so there was still the chance she could wake up. But Katherine was upset right now and she needed to be calmed down. She could contemplate how she didn't want to use her powers later when there wasn't a time limit.

"Do you know where he is right now?"

"Yeah, yeah. He called from his office. I called you as soon as he got off." So a bit less than thirty minutes. It was doable. Rogue glanced over to see the boy was staring at her with an intense look, his head cocked as though he was listening to something.

"Ok, I'll be there as soon as possible." She disconnected. She shoved the cell and closed up the windows on her computer. She had everything she needed and some stuff she never wanted Lex Luthor to get his hands on. Giant freaking killing robots are just what the world needs. Giant freaking killing robots in the hands of Lex Luthor? No, just, no. Another second and she had her laptop closed and everything shoved into her bag.

"So I take it we'll have to continue this discussion later?"

"No. We'll never finish this discussion. Sorry Paperboy, I need to get going." She hefted her bag and was getting ready to make her escape.

"Wait!" he reached out to grab her. Her sleeve had fallen back when she had lifted her back pack and he was latching onto her wrist. She had a second to feel absolute horror before his skin brushed against hers.


	4. Chapter 3

**Story Title: **Checkmate  
**Chapter Rating:** PG13  
**Warning labels: Post **Superman Returns,fusion media Rogue w/divergence of X-men timeline,X-over/AU  
**Disclaimer:** I do not own Superman or the X-men. I make no money off of this and I promise to put the characters back where I found them when I finish.

**Chapter Summary:** Jason and Rogue strike a deal. Lex is plotting.

* * *

**Chapter 3**

Powers. And some of the powers he had were not ones she had already absorbed from anyone else. She already had the super strength, flying, speed, and durability. Hyper senses, an innate intelligence with almost total recall, regeneration, super breath, heat vision, x-ray vision, longevity; a corner of her mind began to purr happily with what it was finding. He was like her. He had powers. While the part of her mind was cataloguing her newly acquired skills, another part of her was shrinking in horror from what she'd let happen.

_Fear- green- Luthor- Who is that boy's father?- terror- _love- flying- _piano- strength- _excited- love- _I've got you, I won't let you fall_- flying- _can you help mommy- water rushing in- terror- choking- mommy!- come on buddy, I'm gonna teach you how to fly this thing_- love- _red cape in the water-_ flying- wind fluttering the red cape he was trying to grab- warm- _x-ray vision _-mommy- _he's going to grow and big and strong, just like his daddy_- love- warm- _fear- green- burning- I'll destroy you- hurts- and your father- no matter what, I'm your dad too_-warm-love_ green- he's just a kid- _warm-love-_hey sport, how bout you make us some ice for the picnic?_ -love_ -fear- let him go- hurts- Daddy! –love-green- -fear- Don't do this Lex- Kryptonite-pain-Dad, help me- hurts- please -pain- pain-_ _I've got you, I've got you_- love-_ pain_- love-_ pain_- love- love- love!

Rogue wrenched herself away from the memories, the feelings that were thrust on her when she'd finished absorbing his skills as her own, with a strangled scream. She fell to the ground, clutching her head with her eyes sealed against the evidence of her sin. No, no, no. Too long, he'd held on too long. That wasn't just a brush of skin. He was going to be in a coma and it was all her fault. Noooo. She rocked forward and back, keening softly in her throat.

"Ah'm sorry. A'm sorry. Ah didn't mean to. Please, Ah'm so sorry." Tears spilled onto her cheeks.

"Are you okay?" Jason's voice hovered somewhere between confused and concerned. Strong arms hesitantly wrapped around her shoulders, holding her stiffly. A large, strong hand patted her awkwardly on her shoulder.

"No, Ah've touched yah," she practically wailed, latching onto his shirt. And now he was going to be in a coma and it was all her fault. "Ah touched yah, and yeh're… " It was all her fault. She gave a little hiccupping sob. His chest was warm, even through the layers of his shirt and her gloves she could feel his steady heartbeat. Wait a minute. Rogue lifted her head as the fact he was able to speak actually sank in. He was real, it was real. She had touched him, rolled pieces of his past around in her head, and he wasn't affected by her powers. She stared at him in wonder, tear tracks drying on her face.

"Are you okay?" He licked his lips nervously. "What just happened?"

He cocked his head, an uneasy look flitting over his face. One of his hands left her back to push back her hair from her face. His fingers and eyes lingered on her bangs. She followed his gaze to see what had captured his attention. She'd been so overwhelmed by his touch she'd lost her shift, revealing her naturally white bangs that morphed into soft black locks, and Jason jerked back from himself. She knew what she would see if she was looking into a mirror; Jason, Mystique, Magneto, Pyro, Quicksilver, Avalanche, Ms. Marvel, person after person. Each form twisted and flowed over her like liquid, until she was uncontrollably cycling between all of the people she had ever absorbed.

Panicking, she reached for the tangled threads of the power in her mind, tugging until she found the power she was looking for. Tapping a hit of super speed she hurtled down the street. A quick glance back showed her the shocked face of the only person she'd ever been able to touch since her powers manifested. She closed her eyes on that bittersweet pain. It didn't matter if she could touch him. After losing control of her powers so badly he would never want to be around her again. If she was lucky he would simply avoid her, but there was always the chance he would reveal what he saw and she would have to flee the home she'd started to make for herself here in Metropolis.

Don't think about it, Rogue. Just get the chip back to Katherine. Whatever happens later, you'll deal with it. You always do. Or so she kept telling herself as she hurtled through the chilling air.

* * *

Jason gave a startled shout when his brain finally caught up with the fact that Rogue took off, but she was gone. He lurched to his feet, swaying slightly. When he put his hand to his head and shook it to clear his vision his eyes caught on something on the ground. He bent down to pick it up, turning it back and forth in his hand. Already the dizziness was passing.

Rogue had put everything back in the bag, but she must have kept it in her hand. She would have dropped it when he grabbed her and… whatever just happened, happened. But the woman on the phone sounded so worried when she'd been talking to Rogue. And she'd mentioned Lex. It would be too much to expect that she wasn't talking about Lex Luthor. His luck wasn't that great.

Well his mother always said the best way to get to a story was to go to the source. He launched himself into the air, flying as fast as he was able his eyes scanning rapidly over the ground below. There, there she was, he found her blurring around the people crowding the sidewalks. He kept pace with her overhead, following her to the complex she was racing toward. At the last moment she flew into the air, and floated into a large open window on the top floor. He settled down on window sill seconds behind her, just in time to see her handing a woman a camera.

"Oh darling, you made it!" The older woman flung her arms around Rogue, relief screaming from every line of her body.

"But you don't have what's really important," he cut in softly. The two women whirled around with identical gasps. Jason hopped down from the sill and held up what he'd picked up from the ground. The memory chip she'd pulled from her laptop.

Jason stared at the woman wearing a bright pink leopard print dress with long sleeves and garish hot pink flowers around her neckline and the hem of her dress. She wore hot pink gloves on her hands with matching shoes. Her black hair was twisted up into a chic knot on the back of her head. As always the woman who had been there for several encounters with Lex Luthor over the years was a study in eclectic fashion.

"Well if it isn't little Jason White. And how have you been doing lately?" Kitty greeted him cautiously as though unsure of his feelings. And well she should be, he noted with a mental snort. She was after all an accessory to many of the attempts made on his life over the years. On the other hand he was also aware that there had been several times when he would have died had it not been for her subtle interference.

"Hello Ms. Kowalski." Jason settled on polite. He could always get rude later if she tried to betray him to Luthor, but he seriously doubted that she would if there was the option not to.

"Give that here!" Rogue hissed, suddenly furious.

"Why? So you can drop it again?" he mocked. "Tell me, what's so important about it?" Jason ordered, bouncing it against his palm. He closed it in a fist and pulled it away when Rogue made an aborted motion to grab it.

"That is none of yehr business!"

"As I recall, out conversation was over," Jason pointed out mildly. "I was speaking with Ms. Kowalski."

The girl's eyes glowed like wrathful chips of kryptonite, and she let out a sound like a steaming teakettle. Rogue's fingers curved into raised claws like she was seriously considering lunging for his throat or scratching out his eyes, but a pink glove on her arm held her back.

"No Rogue, it's okay," Katherine interrupted.

"Kitty!" Rogue hissed in outrage. "Do naht tell meh yah trust this little yay-hoo?"

"Trust may not be the right word for it, but he's not a threat to us," she murmured thoughtfully. She stepped close to Jason. Moving slowly she reached up to fold his hands in hers. She very carefully pried his fingers open and he let her take the chip.

"Rogue he's got skills and resources that could be put to good use. A trade of information for some research seems like a splendid trade, wouldn't you agree?"

Jason shared a long look with her, understanding without words what the other woman meant. Lex was up to something and she wanted someone else to know about it in case it got out of hand, even if she couldn't betray Lex outright. He focused beyond her on the sounds of several footsteps coming toward the door. Rogue also seemed to notice the sounds as she cocked her head to listen.

"Someone is coming."

"Lex! He can't see you here!" Kitty turned an anxious gaze at the door. Rogue swore and grabbed a fistful of Jason's shirt and flung the both of them out the open window seconds before the door opened in the room behind them. Air rushed past until they managed to counter their momentum. Their hands wrapped around each other as they pulled up out of the dive. Blue and green eyes stared at each other in wonder. Even knowing that they both had special powers, was nothing to seeing to sharing it in reality, Jason had never flown with anyone but his father before. It was real and they were hovering together in midair, facing each other.

Then Rogue's eyes flicked to the window in concern. Taking that as his cue Jason pulled her close and twisted them both so that they floated up beside the window where no one inside the room would be able to see them and pushed close to listen. One of his hands was pressed flat against the wall beside his head, the other pressed against the wall at Rogue's waist which left his arm supporting the small of her back. That was the only reason he held his hand there, to support her.

"Ah Kitty, you have the camera." A pause filled with some two tiny clicks. "Let's see you managed to get for me."

Jason focused his gaze through the wall to watch, and from the look on her face he imagined Rogue was doing the same. Two black suits were hovering by the door. The bodyguards each had a gun tucked discreetly under their arms. Lex Luthor was standing next to Kitty with the camera in his hands and he was fiddling with the buttons to check what was on the screen. Lex wore a sleek gray suit with a pale purple shirt. He curled his body to sit on the couch and propped his loafers on the table. He made a few muttering noises like 'hm' and 'uhhmm'. Kitty nervously smoothed her dress over her hips before she wandered over to the bar and started to mix herself a drink.

"Well done. It's not as incriminating as I was hoping for, but I can definitely make use of this."

"And the feed is coming through clear on the bugs I planted?" Kitty asked, fishing for her olive with a toothpick.

"Working. As a matter of fact, Shaw was meeting with a rather interesting individual this morning."

"Oh?" she popped the little green oval into her mouth.

"Yes, but one who might be of interest to the Senate. Very, very good Kitty. I have to get back to the office now. I'm having a dinner date at six. I'll send the car around for you then so do be ready."

"Sure thing, Lex."

Rogue tapped Jason on the shoulder, and jerked her chin toward the ceiling. They pushed away from the wall and the two of them floated up to hover over the roof, and neither one of them seemed to feel quite willing to touch down just yet. It as strange but something about the fact that they were able to face each other like that was comforting to Jason, like having the same power had connected them somehow.

"So Ah guess yah want some answers now," Rogue spoke softly.

"What has Luthor been up to? How did you get involved in all this? What happened earlier when I touched you at school and you freaked out? Which, incidentally enough, I have even more questions about." Jason waved on arm for emphasis. All he'd seriously been planning was to talk to the scary new girl and maybe if that turned out well ask her on a pseudo-date so he could get to know her better. This whole thing had turned into a big conspiracy involving a megalomaniac madman who was irritatingly persistent in his attempts to attack Jason's family, strange secret files, and god help them all, Pomeranians.

There were _always_ Pomeranians.

"Ah don't know enough yet about what's goin'on tah tell yah for sure, but Ah've got access where yah don't. Tell you what Paperboy, Ah'll do the recon if you'll do the research. Together we find out what's going on with Lex. When it's all over you get a story, and Ah'm_ not_ named in anything you write. How's that sound for a deal?" as she spoke the southern girl peeled off the glove on her right hand.

"Okay," he drew out the word slowly. She had extended her hand in offering. He couldn't help eyeing her suspiciously; the expression on her face was far too innocent. He reached out to shake her hand. At the last second he pulled it back with a sudden thought. "But what about your powers? Do I get the scoop on that too?"

"Mah powers?" she raised her brows. "No. Mah powers aren't part of the bargain. If yah want tah find out about mah powers, you'll have to find out about them on yehr own time."

"On my own time, huh? Well, how about tomorrow, after I get off work?" Jason jumped at the chance, hoping she wouldn't smack him down for asking.

"Ahlright then. Tomorrow."

"Okay, then. It's a deal, all the way around." This time he did take her hand for a shake. She closed her eyes, and clutched his hand like it was a lifeline. She swayed toward him, almost hypnotized. She licked her lips. Jason had the uneasy feeling that she was trying to absorb his warmth for herself. When he tried to tug his hand back, she tightened her grip almost painfully. He gave up and let her keep his hand.

"Hey, um, I'm running late for work, but I'll start digging around today. If you find out anything more, go ahead and give me a call or come down to the Daily Planet and ask for me, okay?"

Rogue seemed to regret that she let him go the minute their hands weren't touching. She rubbed her fingers together like she was trying to memorize the feel of his hand against her own. She settled down on the rooftop with a soft thud. He floated up, still looking down on her.

"See yah tomorrow then?" she prodded in a hopeful voice.

"It's a date."

She gave him a smile that would have been shy if there wasn't something in her eyes that was almost… hungry when she looked at him. He shivered, and had a second to wonder just what he was getting himself into.

* * *

"Kitty is up to something," Lex Luthor announced to his security agents. He studied the two men on the seat opposite himself.

"You want one of us to start guarding her again, Boss?"

"What, the way you guarded her last time, Char? As I recall your guarding her left _you_ with a drugged hangover and _her_ free to run all over town and pick up homeless kids with _your_ gun. Trust me, the very_ last_ thing I need right now is your peculiar brand of _guarding_ Kitty," he sneered mockingly, ignoring the flush that worked its way up his hired help's neck and face. As he recalled the former arsonist quite liked to feel the burn, so he could stew in the heat of his own failure for a moment. He ignored his other guard's snickering at Char's expense. They were big boys and could settle things between themselves.

"No, but I do want you to start keeping track of her. And the little girl she's picked up as well." Something had changed since the girl had come to live with Kitty, something too subtle to put his finger on. Never the less he would allow her the indulgence until it became a serious threat, and then he would remove the threat as necessary. Besides, there was no guarantee that the change would be a bad one for him if he was able to turn it to his advantage.

He turned his attention to the camera in his hands once again and thought back to the conversation he'd overheard with Sebastian Shaw and the illustrious Senator Kelly that very morning. The Sentinel. Hm, a military project perhaps? Speaking of military project he'd have to get in touch with Zhivago and make sure things were running smoothly on his end. As long as everything went according to plan, he would have everything he had ever strived for. And then…

Superman and his little brat would be his to destroy.

* * *

Sorry for taking so long on this chapter, and a special thanks to everyone who dropped me a line to let me know what they think for last couple chapters. Constructive criticism is always valued.


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